1. Field of the Invention
These and all other extrinsic materials discussed herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety. Where a definition or use of a term in an incorporated reference is inconsistent or contrary to the definition of that term provided herein, the definition of that term provided herein applies and the definition of that term in the reference does not apply.
The present invention relates to surface cleaning device. More particularly the invention relates to orbital surface cleaning devices.
2. Prior Art
Conventional floor cleaning devices generally include cleaning head assemblies with handles engaged thereon. Head assemblies generally consist of a drive motor (electric or gas powered) which are mounted to a separate frame, which drives a flywheel and drive plate which are mounted on the end of a handled frame.
Orbital cleaning devices generally employ cleaning head assemblies with flywheels having offset weight configurations in order to achieve orbital cleaning motion of a cleaning pad engaged to the drive plate. The weights are employed to achieve desirable cleaning oscillations which provides improved cleaning characteristics in comparison to pure rotational devices.
Such conventional orbital as well as rotational surface cleaning devices, tend to be heavy, bulky, and cumbersome to operate, even with exceptional knowledge of the device. It is widely known that orbital floor cleaning devices in particular tend to exacerbate the negative aspects commonly associated with floor cleaning devices due to the need to balance the oscillation and rotation of the drive plate. This is especially true when such conventional floor cleaning devices are placed in the hands of less skilled personnel who must learn the delicate art of turning and repositioning conventional devices upon the surface being cleaned, without damaging it.
Unfortunately, manufacturers continue to produce such devices which must be formed in a manner to be heavy in order to counterbalance vibrational and rotational motions of the weights which must be employed to counter balance the weight of the polishing and cleaning component. The result is a difficult-to-use device that provides an uncomfortable experience for the user. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,355,542 to Oreck et al. titled “Orbiter Floor Apparatus”, granted Oct. 18, 1994, describes a floor cleaning device that is bulky, difficult to use, and is prone inherently to vibrate excessively, and lacks sufficient performance (insufficient dirt extraction, cleaning).
One issue with the device to Oreck is that the configuration of the various components and weights on one side surface of a flywheel are required to achieve the desired orbital motion. However the taught configuration is adapted to produce excessive vibration and directional turning in a manner requiring a leaning of the device, sometimes in an opposite direction of the desired turn. The result is therefor a device which is difficult to handle, prone to damaging the surface being cleaned if not turned by an experienced user, and lacking in user comfort.
Such approaches are considered disadvantageous because the parts employed to create the orbital motion also create numerous stresses and vibrations during use in the planes both normal to and parallel to the flywheel and drive plate. Over extended period of use, the flywheel and other components can potentially break apart due to such stresses. A more ideal orbital floor cleaning system would utilize fewer parts with higher precision to generating desirable motion, while also balancing user comfort.
Another issue with the device of Oreck and similar devices is that they fail to meet the industry standards as a deep cleaner for carpets and rugs (see the Carpet and Rug Institute Seal of Approval Program at www.carpet-rug.org) This limits the desirability of such a device in many industries including hotels, motels, theme parks, and other locations where meeting industry standards are desired.
Further, conventional orbital cleaning device provide cleaning head assemblies engaged to steering handles which are positioned for operative use at substantially horizontal angles relative to the horizontal surface being cleaned. This positioning limits the user ability to maneuver the device around obstacles while changing directions, performing maintenance, and overall comfort during use. Such a configuration, providing an inline communication with the operative head, will also transmit vibrations from the cleaning head to the handles more easily, and is further undesirable in that manner.
Still further, the device to Oreck and others do not provide an device that may partially rest on wheels during operation of the machine, due to the nature of their operation and turning, making it difficult to guide and maneuver prior art polishers during operation. In addition, many devices employ liquid dispensers which rely on a gravity-fed cleaning solution dispenser, which can lead to over wetting and lack of moisture control on the work surface.
What has yet to be appreciated is a floor cleaning device having modular parts to allow users to quickly adapt the device for a particular purpose. Further when adapted to a particular cleaning purpose, such an device should include an orbital head assembly configured with few parts, thus eliminating costly maintenance or downtime. Still further, such a device should provide an orbital head which allows for quick changing of the working components during a job, as they wear or become soiled. Furthermore, the modularity of such a device should be configured so as to avoid the potential damage caused by turning and situational used of conventional orbital polishers to thereby enable nontechnical users to use the device with less training and quickly replace parts, to upgrade the device, or otherwise configure the device for a target application.
A modular device allows for easily disassembly of the device down and transporting it to new locations. Such an approach can be advantageously employed while maintaining a comfortable experience for the user. Further, such a device should be configured to lessen or minimize the stress communicated to the hands and arms of users during employment of the device through the provision of improved handle grips. In addition, it has yet to be appreciated that an orbital floor cleaning device can meet industry standards and requirements for all work surface types (e.g., carpets, rugs, hard floors, concrete, wood, stone, tile, grout, brick, vinyl/fcv/linoleum, etc).
As such, there is a continuing unmet need for an improved orbital cleaning device which solves the problems associated in prior art.
The forgoing examples of related art and limitation related therewith are intended to be illustrative and not exclusive, and they do not imply any limitations on the invention described and claimed herein. Various limitations of the related art will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading and understanding of the specification below and the accompanying drawings.